


Bitter Incarnations

by devilinthedetails



Series: A Hundred Reflections of the Elements [3]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Angst, Family, Family Drama, Gen, Zuko and Iroh Bonding, Zuko in exile, psychological abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-18
Updated: 2020-08-18
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:49:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25976215
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/devilinthedetails/pseuds/devilinthedetails
Summary: Zuko and his battles against bitterness.
Series: A Hundred Reflections of the Elements [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1881241
Kudos: 6





	Bitter Incarnations

A Professor or (Retired) General Reading 

“What are you reading?” Zuko scowled as he discovered the older man’s nose buried in crumbling parchment. 

“Something to help you locate the Avatar.” Uncle Iroh’s serenity was blood-boiling. “An account of the Avatar’s past lives.” 

“We don’t need to find the Avatar in his past lives.” Zuko’s scowl swelled into a glower. “We need to find him in his present life.” 

“Broaden your mind.” Uncle Iroh’s gaze remained on his scroll. “The past has clues into the present.” 

“Are you a professor or a general?” snapped Zuko. 

“A retired general reading.” Uncle Iroh was unperturbed by Zuko’s rudeness. 

Schooled in the Basics

“Focus on your breathing, Zuko.” Uncle Iroh’s voice was calm as he guided Zuko through a breathing exercise in his shipboard cabin. “Your lungs are bellows, creating the breath that fans and controls your fire. Your breath is how the flames inside you blaze outside of you.” 

Zuko didn’t need to be reminded how to breathe.

“You don’t have to school me in the basics, uncle,” he snarled. “I’m ready for more advanced lessons.” 

“The basics are foundations for more advanced lessons.” Uncle Iroh shook his head and continued his breathing lesson as if Zuko had never lodged a complaint. 

Not Gifted

Zuko wasn’t gifted in firebending like Azula. He would’ve noticed even if his father hadn’t pointed it out at every opportunity. 

He remembered practicing a form Azula had mastered years ago, knowing he was being compared to his sister and found wanting in his father’s burning eyes. 

“You aren’t gifted like Azula.” His father’s words seared Zuko with shame. “Your firebending is clumsy and weak. Azula should’ve been my firstborn, not you.” 

Zuko’s mouth went drought-dry. Before he could stutter out a promise to to make his father proud, his father had walked away, leaving Zuko in the dust. 

Bitter Karma

“You shouldn’t be so bitter,” Uncle Iroh advised Zuko as the ocean rocked the low table where he drank a steaming cup of jasmine tea. “Bitterness builds bad karma.” 

“Karma?” Zuko thought this sounded like the rambling of a crazy old man. 

“The cosmic energy that follows us from one incarnation to the next.” His uncle continued to sip his tea. “It can be positive or negative.” 

“Only the Avatar gets reincarnated,” growled Zuko, frustrated at his uncle’s forgetfulness. 

“Perhaps.” His uncle’s hands folded over his belly. “Or perhaps the Avatar is the only one who remembers his past incarnations.” 

Sandal Gambit

“I’m glad my sandal gambit succeeded and you were able to track me by it.” Uncle Iroh smiled at Zuko’s demand that he finally put on some clothes. 

“Your strong scent would’ve allowed me to find you even if your sandal gambit had failed.” Zuko snorted. 

“However you found me, I’m grateful you did.” Uncle Iroh chuckled, not offended by Zuko’s snide remark. 

“I saw the Avatar’s flying bison as I tracked you.” Zuko didn’t know what made him tell his uncle this. “I had the choice between capturing the Avatar and rescuing you, and I chose to rescue you.”


End file.
